KETTLE VALLEY MODEL RAILWAY

Friday, 9 February 2018

The
Kettle Valley Division of the Canadian Pacific Railway was an interesting and
challenging mountain railroad that linked the small and scattered communities of
southern British Columbia for most of the 20th century. It was considered to be a second mainline with several connections to the parent company's Transcontinental line to the north. Abandonment took place by subdivisions from 1957 to 1989 except for a 10 mile section in the sunny Okanagan which was ceded to a non-profit tourist line that operates a beautifully restored steam locomotive typical of those found on the KVR in the 1930's to 1953: https://www.kettlevalleyrail.org/

The HO
version of the "Kettle Valley" is very faithful to the prototype in
its topography, infrastructure, trains and operational features as they were
when steam was king. The 385 foot mainline (6.3 scale miles) is stretched out
over two decks with a helix in the middle and staging tracks at each end. Most
of the scenery and trackage closely resemble specific locales of two
subdivisions on the Westside of the Kettle Valley Division, a distance of 90
miles. The small Division point of Brookmere is the centre of layout activity
at which all freight trains terminate and originate. Four passenger trains and many through freights are featured.Pusher service is run on the Coquihalla
Sub.Princeton town can keep a
way-freight crew very busy.At the
western end, Hope has some interesting switching opportunities and interchanges
with the Canadian National. There is substantial scenery completed and most
structures are scratch built.Rolling
stock and motive power are detailed and accurate for the period.

Session
Parameters: The
regular daytime sessions run about 4 1/2 hours including a recess at the midway
point. Occasional evening sessions are shorter.We run a full day starting at midnight on a
specific day in September, 1949 using a 24 hour Clock.The Ratio is set at 6:1. Several remote
clocks are mounted in the lighting valance around the layout. “Excess height”
(6”- 2”) model railroaders are warned about low overhead clearance to the
Valances.

Assignments are described at the end of the document. We attempt to arrange at least initial
assignments according to guest preferences (by email) and it seems to work
out.The midday break divides the
session in two and allows crews to change to different jobs.

Room
access & misc.: You can walk in and out of the layout room at the
start; at the mid-session break; and at the end of the session. But as the session starts, we
close the gate after which, normal egress entails a duck-under action (hands
and knees); however, for those with mobility concerns, the gate can be opened
during the session when trains are clear.Washroom is upstairs to the left. There are stools in the layout
room and seats in the Dispatcher's office/laundry room.A bar fridge containing juices, beer, and
water is located in the train room.Help
yourself!Drink Holders are distributed
on the fascia of the layout.

Timetable
is based on the actual CPR Employee Timetable No.
94 of September 1949. Most model trains arrive or depart from
Brookmere close to the prototype times. Copies of the modeled Timetable are
posted on the valances and personal copies are available. As on the
prototype, this railroad is a slow one and scheduled freights often run
late. On the lower level is the Princeton Sub complete with a
straightaway including a "curved tangent" on which trains are known
to make up some of their lost time just as the KVR crews did in days gone
by. In the 4 1/2 turn helix of the Coquihalla Sub, time can be made up as
well where speeds of a breath-taking 32 m/p/h can be reached. The westernmost station on the Timetable is Odlum which is the junction
with the CPR mainline. A few miles to the west on the prototype was the
mainline yard at Ruby Creek where KV trains originate and
terminate. For our purposes, Odlum and Ruby Creek are used
interchangeably to denote west staging.

Train Orders: A pink Form 19
grants Authority to run from one station to another or to meet/pass
another train en route. Train orders supersede the directives of the Timetable.Occasionally, a white Form 31 is issued to restrict a superior train.Most Train Orders are the basic runners, meet
orders and run-lates.

Clearance Card: All trains, whether Schedules or
Extras, must have a completed green Clearance Form in order to leave their
originating terminals. When your run is completed, all these forms can be
discarded into the Company waste basket.

OS /Train Report: Please assist the overworked
and underpaid Station Operators to note your arrival and/or departure times at open
stations as they can be very busy with many things. If necessary use a
post-it note with your train designation and times inscribed and leave it on
the desk of the Operator whose attention may be directed elsewhere.There are a number of "dark"
stations where an OS is not applicable. No board = No report.Normally, train crews do not interact
directly with the dispatcher.

Register: The junction at Brodie on the Coquihalla Sub requires
all trains to register before proceeding. The Train Register is a
clipboard hanging on the fascia next to the entrance gate and below the model
register shack. Check the entries of previous trains to assure yourself that all superior trains due have arrived and left.

Train
Order Boards are Two-Aspect
Upper Quadrant style.Blade pointing
upwards means clear/ proceed. Blade down at the horizontal means stop for
orders. This happens a few times in a session. Sometimes an experienced
Opr will set the signal to stop for 20 minutes after the departure of a train
in order to maintain the appropriate Interval between it and a following train.
(Rule 91)

Interlocking
Signals: Semaphoresignals controlling the C N R Crossing are CLEAR so
proceed without worry. The semaphores are set to “green over red” which denotes
PROCEED. The competition is shut down
because of a labour dispute so there is no traffic on the Canadian National
Railway.Special Instructions stipulate
a slow order of 15 mph over the crossing.One day we will make them work with appropriate interlocking derails.

Train Card: Every train has this coaching aid inserted into the Engine
Card.This gives a brief station- by-
station procedure to be followed and can be perused before setting out as well
as while in transit.At the bottom of
the card is a PTO
meaning Please Turn Over to read the second page of the Train Card.

Car Cards and Waybills: standard 4 cycle for car-forwarding.The reporting marks, the car number and the
body colour are printed in the colour of the actual model for ready
identification.The waybills have a
colour stripe overlaid with destination/direction so you do not need to study a
railway map of southern BC to work the freights. At the main stations,
there are trustworthy Operators to assist you in planning your moves if
necessary. In Brookmere yard the dedicated switch crew can direct movements. The layout
owner functions as the Station Agent for all stations and is ready to answer
any of your questions.The waybills are
not turned during a session.

Staging: West staging (Ruby Creek has 5 tracks) is located
directly above East staging (Penticton has 6 tracks). Trains are
visible in staging through two opera windows.A Diode matrix controls all necessary turnouts so you simply press the appropriate
single red button to select the entire route for your train for entering or
leaving the staging yards. After clearing the yard ladder, reset the
switches to "Normal" by pressing the green button marked “normal”.
When terminating at staging, you engine will stop automatically at the
end of the selected track on a dead section. Again, reline the switches
to "Normal". This "Normal" setting cuts power to all
staging tracks.For starting out on your
run, a handy device to ensure you have acquired your train is to sound the
whistle. Then linger not near the windows as the adjacent aisle can become a bottleneck.

Uncoupling: Magnets are placed
strategically for uncoupling but picks are also necessary. Please use the
magnets when you can - especially in the yard. There are Rapido
electro-magnets in Brookmere yard which are marked with a coloured pin and blue
lamp when activated.Cut lever
actuators for other manual magnetic uncouplers are found out on the road.
There are also permanent Kadee magnets in other places.All Uncoupling Magnets are marked with a yellow
pin in front of the track.

"Isolator": This is a term we coined to describe the shutting off of power to a
short section of track where a loco may park and not "idle", thereby soaking
up juice, hissing away at us with pop valves at the most inappropriate times
and wearing out those expensive electronic decoders $$$. Two isolators are
located on the shop track lead, on all the roundhouse tracks and one on the
west leg of the Hope "Y". If your engine does not respond to
your throttle, it could be that it is parked on an isolator. Look for a
small toggle switch in the vicinity.Up
is on.

Throttles: Here follows a description of
how to use the throttles which are CVPwireless controllers T9000
and T5000 connected to a Lenz
Command Station. They are very simple and reliable to use. The KV was a slow mountain railroad where
freights averaged about 15 mph (which corresponds to a speed step display of
"15").Passenger trains could
reach upwards of 25 mph.The rotary knob is the
speed controller:Turn it clockwise, to
accelerate; counter-clockwise to decelerate. Push down (audible
click sound is heard) to reverse the locomotive. The arrowhead pointing
to the right indicates your loco will
go forward. Moderate Momentum
is programmed into the locomotive decoders except for the yard switcher.

To acquire engine 3628,
press 6 keys: #-3-6-2-8-#. Likewise to acquire engine 443, press
#-4-4-3-#. It is rarely necessary to "release" or “dispatch” a
loco but if you wish, #-9-# will do it.Sometimes
while operating, you may press a button accidentally so that you lose control
of your loco or the sound features. Simply press * (star) to recover control of the
loco or sound features.

Unique features: The coloured keys can help you maximize the sound options as
you operate. Hopefully they are intuitive. Keys 5 & 9 are
unassigned as yet (we'll think of something eventually).A cheat
sheet can be found on the back
of the throttle.

1 brass: bell will sound until key is pressed a
second time.

2 beige with dash (--)
: long whistle which will sound as long as key is held down.

3 beigewith
dot:(.) short whistle which will give one short toot for each press.

4 beige with yellow dot:
Dim the headlight. For yard switching and meeting other trains.

7 red is a brake function that will bring the engine to a moderately
quick stop. Brake squeal sounds accompany its application. A
good emergency stop function. It is also useful for fine moves such
as spotting the tender hatch under the water tower or spotting a
car. When pressed again the brake is released; the loco will
accelerate to its previous speed step setting.

8
mute

0 yellow will turn the headlight on/off.

* (star) is an escape key.

Whistle Function (f2, f3): Here are some basic whistle
signals (not used in switching moves) according to Rule 14 of the UCOR (Uniform
Code of Operating Rules):

o1 short whistle: stop

--- --- 2 longs: release
brakes, proceed

o o o 3 shorts: back
up

--- ---o---at
whistle posts for grade crossings and where view is limited------------- extra long single whistle: approaching train order office stations,
watering points and railway crossings
at grade.

Headlight (f 0): In our steam era, headlights
were only required at night or through dark tunnels and snow-sheds but you need
not feel bound by this rule.

Bell(f 1): is rung while
approaching and passing a station platform where there may be members of the
public (Princeton, Hope and Brookmere). This does not apply in
most cases to yard switching nor to flag stops. It should also be
rung immediately prior to moving after a prolonged stop. For example:
Passenger train, No. 46, would ring its bell approaching the station platform
at Brookmere until train comes to a stop. After entraining passengers,
bell would sound (and 2 long whistles) immediately prior to departure until
train has cleared the platform. Incidentally, Station Agents like the
baggage car spotted on the platform for ease of access for the baggage carts.Another use of the bell is when your train is
passing another train on an adjacent track such as at meets or at stations.

Brake (f 7): As mentioned above, this
feature is activated by the red button “7”.It is convenient for spotting engines accurately and for switching
without adjusting the throttle.Occasionally
and mysteriously, the button must be pressed twice for the engine to move after
sitting idle for a while.

Derailments: They can happen and you
are permitted to re-rail the car or loco yourself. Be aware that most
rolling stock is highly detailed and care should be taken in handling or uncoupling.

Assignments:

1.Enginemen’s Pool for Through Freights and Passenger Trains.A member of the engineman’s pool usually
operates 3 to 4 trains in the full session.

2.Pusher service assignment is drawn from the Enginemen’s
pool and keeps a person moderately busy for each shift of the session on the
Coquihalla sub. For freight trains the pusher assists at the tail end of the
train usually cutting off at the summit and returning light to Hope for the
next westbound.For passenger trains, pushers
are placed at the head of the train and run through from Hope to Brookmere. All Decoders are programmed so that the speed
step displayed on the throttle shows the locomotive speed in scale mph which
simplifies speed matching with the road engine.

3.Mine Turn is the first train out of
Brookmere yard, running to Princeton and return with a further trip up to
Coquihalla summit where it sets out the loads for the next westward through
freight.Moderately challenging as there
is a time element.

4.Coquihalla Wayfreight serves the various industries of
Hope, the CN Interchange and one or two other on-line spurs all the while
keeping out of the way of superior trains on the subdivision. Straight-forward
and interesting.

5.Princeton Wayfreight entails a number of lifts and
set-outs along the line and a good deal of switching in Princeton town.A very challenging solo job or an interesting
two-man assignment.

6.Brookmere Yard Crew works the East end of the yard to
make up and break down trains, switching and blocking cars according to the
waybills.They co-ordinate movements
within the yard and perform local switching for the Brookmere service tracks
and log spur. Outbound westward trains do their own switching at the west end
of the yard to make up their trains.Inbound road crews usually set out their own cabooses.A line-up is posted nearby for each of the
two shifts.

7.Station Operators take orders over the phone on the
authority of the Dispatcher and issue clearances which are delivered to train
crews.They also record times of trains
arriving and departing at their station(s) and “O S” them to the Dispatcher.
Some people prefer this job; others don’t.Our usual practice is to serve one shift at the desk and another shift
on the road with “seniority” given to them for their throttle job.A complete guide to performing the role as we
have adapted it from the traditional CPR practice will be provided.

8.Dispatcher can make or break a session so for an experienced
guest, this job is available with our regular dispatcher acting as coach as
necessary.For some people it would be preferable
to serve as a Station Operator before assuming the Dispatcher’s position.Canadian practice is to address “To: Engine
3627...” rather than the U S practice of “To: C & E of engine 3627...”In other words, no “C & E” (Conductor and Engineer).